Transfer mechanism for tunnel kiln



Jan. 26, 1960 E. c. HORNI TRANSFER MECHANISM FOR TUNNEL KILN 2Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Jan. 23, 1957 lllllllllllllllll L lkiiilIiKINVENTOR EDWARD C. HORN! ATTORNEYS Jan. 26, 1960 E. c. HORNI 1 TRANSFERMECHANISM FOR TUNNEL KILN Filed Jan. 23, 1957 2 sheets sheet 2 67 92 6264 92 6O 58 60/ 62 1' I, r l g i fr!!- Z ,25\\\ k J EDLIHRD C. HORNI BYyMMJAZA ATTORNEYS United States Patent f TRANFER MECHANISM FOR TUNNELKILN Edward C. Horni, Pittsburgh, Pa., assignor to Swindell- DresslerCorporation, Pittsburgh, Pa., a corporation of Pennsylvania ApplicationJanuary 23, 1957, Serial No. 635,693

17 Claims. (Cl. 104-48) This invention relates to transfer mechanismsand particularly to transfer mechanisms for use in conjunction withtunnel kilns.

In tunnel kilns, the ware is moved through a longitudinal kiln on a carwhich runs along track rails extending through the kiln along the bottomthereof. The car is moved through the kiln at a relatively slow ratewhereby to give the ware therein an opportunity to be properly fired asthe car moves through the kiln. After the car leaves the kiln it becomesnecessary to transfer it to another track, either a return track runningalongside and parallel to the track extending through the kiln, or tostorage tracks which may be parallel to the kiln tracks and disposedlaterally therefrom.

In either event, it is necessary to transfer the kiln car to the othersets of tracks and this transfer is effected by means of a transfermechanism. It is necessary to keep in mind when devising transfermechanisms to cooperate with tunnel kilns of the type described, thatthe wares are extremely fragile and relatively slight jarring may besufficient to shatter or displace at least a portion of the wares on thecar. Accordingly, the transfer mechanism must be designed to obviate thepossibility of jarring the kiln car during the transfer thereof from oneset of tracks to another.

When the track arrangement is such that there is only a set of tracksrunning through the kiln and a return set of tracks running parallel tothe kiln but exterior thereof, the problem is of a unique or specialnature which may be solved by special apparatus not generally usable formore complex track arrangements. An example of a highly desirabletransfer mechanism for the simple two track arrangement of the typedescribed in this paragraph is illustrated in the application of CharlesDean Tinker, Serial No. 246,661, filed September 14, 1951, nowabandoned. Reference to this application will illustrate the care withwhich the transfer mechanism has been designed to reduce or eliminatejarring ofthe car during the transfer thereof from the tunnel kilntracks to the return tracks.

When, however, the track arrangement is more complex than the simpletwo-track configuration described above, the Tinker arrangement cannotbe readily employed since it has been specifically designed to transfera tunnel kiln car from one pair of tracks extending through the kiln toanother and only one other pair of tracks running alongside the kiln.Accordingly, a completely different type of car transfer mechanism mustbe employed. Nevertheless, the car transfer mechanism to be employed inconjunction with a more complex track array must still operate in such amanner as to obviate the possibility of substantial jarring of the carduring the transfer thereof.

It is accordingly one object of the present invention to provide a newand improved transfer mechanism.

Another object of the present invention is the provision of a new andimproved transfer mechanism to operate in conjunction with tunnel kilns.

7 2,922,381 Patented Jan. 26, 1960 Still a further object of the presentinvention is the provision of a new and improved transfer mechanism foroperation with tunnel kilns, which mechanism operates in such a mannerthat there is substantially no danger of jarring of the ware on a tunnelkiln car during the transfer thereof from one set of tracks to another.

Still another object of the present invention is the provision of a newand improved transfer mechanism for operation with tunnel kilns, whichtransfer mechanism is effective for transferring the kiln cars to andfrom at least three sets of track rails.

The above and other objects, characteristics and features of the presentinvention will be more fully understood from the following descriptiontaken in conjunction with the accompanying illustrative drawings.

In the drawings: 1

Fig. 1 is a plan view of the exit end of a tunnel kiln together withassociated track rails;

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the transfer mechanism embodying the presentinvention, with parts thereof broken away to more clearly illustratesome of the features of the invention;

Fig. 3 is an end elevational view of the transfer mechanism shown inFig. 2;

Fig. 4 is an enlarged plan view of one portion of the transfer mechanismillustrating the operation of the stop means associated therewith; and

Fig. 5 is a side elevational view of that portion of the transfermechanism shown in detail in Fig. 2

Referring now to the drawings in detail and particularly to Fig. 1thereof, the bottom left hand track rails 10 and 12 extendlongitudinally through a tunnel kiln 14 of any desired design. Extendingparallel to the track rails 10 and 12 are a first pair of return trackrails 16 and 18 and a second pair of track rails 20 and 22. Opposite andspaced from each of the three sets of track rails described arecorresponding track rails 24 and 26 making up one set of track rails, 28and 30 making up another set of track rails, and 32 and 34 making upstill another set of track rails. It willbe noted that the three sets oftrack rails on the right hand side, that is the track rails made up oftracks 24-34 are spaced from the track rails on the letf hand side ofFig. 1 by a pit 36. Disposed in the pit at a level lower than that ofthe track rails 10, 12 and 16 to 34 are a pair of parallel transferrails 38 and 4t) (see Fig. 3). A transfer mechanism 42 including fourwheels 44 has the four Wheels 44 disposed on the track rails 38 and 40to permit movement of the transfer mechanism laterally of the trackrails extending through or parallel to the tunnel kiln 14. In thismanner the transfer mechanism 42 can be brought into registry with eachset of track rails.

Referring now to Figs. 2 and 3, the transfer mechanism 42 includes twoside members 46 which may preferably be in the form of channels. Theseside members 46 are connected in any suitable manner to end members 48which also may be channel members.- Preferably, the unctures between theside members 46 and the end members 48 are reinforced as by corner anglemembers50. Secured to the side members 46 are four sets of brackets 52.The manner of securement of the brackets 52 may be effected in anymanner desired for the convenience of the fabricator. For instance, thebrackets may be welded or riveted or, as shown in Fig. 2, bolted to theside members 46. Each set of brackets defines therebetween a space in'which a roller 54 may be disposed. The rollers 54 are mounted on thebrackets 52as by axles 56. It will be observed that the rollersoperatively connected to one side member 46 are in 'line with andopposed to the rollers 54 operatively connected to the other side member46. Disposed on each pair of opposed rollers 54 is a carriage rail 58which is permitted to move in a longitudinal direction transversely ofthe movement of the transfer mechanism 42 because of the positioningthereof on the rollers 54. Preferably, the carriage rails ,58 are fixedto one another as by transverse bracing angle members 60 which aresecured to carriage rails 58 in any dmired manner. The carriage rails 58are disposed in the same plane as the track rails 10, 12 and 16-34. Themovable rail assembly is held in alignment and guided by means of alongitudinal bar 61, which also serves as a frame brace. This barextends parallel to end members 48 and centrally thereof. It is securedto side members 46 in any suitable manner as by nuts 63 and passesthrough adjustable guide plates bolted to transverse angles 60.

In accordance with the present invention, the carriage rails 58 are aslight distance shorter than the distance between the opposed ends 62 ofthe track rails 10, 12 and 16-34. Moreover, in accordance with thepresent invention, the carriage rails 58 are movable to and from acentral or neutral position in which the respective ends 64 and 66 ofthe carriage rails 58 are spaced from the ends 62 of the track rails,and to and from a position in which the ends 64 of the carriage rails 58are in abutting relationship with the ends 62 of the track rails on onesideof pit 36, and to and from a position in which the ends 66 of thecarriage rails 58 are in abutting relationship with the ends 62 of thetrack rails on the other side of pit 36. By providing for thelongtiudinal movement of the carriage rails 58 to and from the threepositions described above, it will be seen that the carriage rails canbe moved to and from positions in which a kiln car can be moved onto andoff of said carriage rails without substantial jarring thereof, therebeing no gap between the carriage rails and the track rails at the timeof transfer. Moreover, when the carriage rails 58 are in their centralposition in which the ends 64 and 66 thereof are spaced from the ends 62of the track rails, the transfer carriage 42 may be moved laterally ofthe track rails along transfer rails 38 and 40 without the edges of thecarriage rails engaging the edges of the track rails. Of course, if thelatter were to occur, there would be sub stantial jarring of thecarriage, which jarring might well break the wares on a kiln cardisposed on the carriage 42. To efiect movement of the transfer carriagealong transferrails 38 and 40, a suitable handle is provided. As shownin the drawings, the handle is a U-shaped member 67 secured to endmember 48 as by brackets 69.

In order to effect the shifting movement of the carriage rails 58 to andfrom the three positions described above, a pair of thrust rods 72 arefixedly connected to the depending portions 70 of each of the anglebrackets 60 and are operatively connected to each other by a clevistype'connector 74 disposed centrally of the brackets 60 and in betweenthe carriage rails 58. The connector 74 is provided with a pin 76 whichextends outwardly from the surface thereof transversely of the thrustrods 72. A crank 78 is fixedly mounted on a rotatable shaft 80 which inturn is mounted in a bearing 82 fixed to a base plate 84 on the carriage42. The crank 78 is provided with a vertical slot 86 which receives pin76 thereby forming the operating connection between thrust rods 72 andcrank 78. The other end of the rotatable shaft 80 is mounted in abearing 88 in the side member 48 of carriage 42. Fixed to the shaft 80adjacent the bearing 88 is a lever 90 which extends upwardly aconsiderable distance above the rails 58.

As shown in Fig. 3 in solid lines, lever 90 is in its center positionwhich disposes crank 78 in its center posi tion whereby to disposecarriage rails 58 in their center positions wherein the edges thereofare spaced from the edges 62 of confronting track rails. If it isdesired to effect a movement of the carriage rails 58 to the left, lever90 is pushed to the left whereby to rotate crank 78 to the left. Rotarymovement of crank 78 to the left int-v parts longitudinal movement tothrust rod 72 in a leftwise direction. This movement is imparted bymeans of the pin and slot connection between the crank 78 and theconnector 74, the pin and slot connection permitting the relativemovement to be readily translated into linear movement. With the thrustrods 72 being moved in a leftward direction, leftward movement isimparted to the carriage rails 58 through the brackets whereby to movethe carriage rails so that the edges 64 thereof move into abuttingrelationship with the edges 62 of the left hand pair of rails. With thecarriage rails in abutting relationship with the track rails,substantially jar-free transfer of a kiln car onto or off of thetransfer carriage can be effected.

By a similar manner, when lever 90 is shifted to its rightmost positionshown in dotted lines in Fig. 3, edges 66 of carriage rails 58 may bebrought into abutting relationship with the edges 62 of right'handadjacent track rails. When a transfer is completed and it is dedesiredto move the transfer carriage to another position, the lever 90 may bereturned to its center position whereby to provide clearance between theedges of the carriage rails 58 and the edges 62 of the track rails. Withthis clearance provided, the transfer carriage 42 may be moved along thetransfer tracks 38 and 40 to some other position without any contactwith or jarring from the track rails.

In the design of this transfer mechanism, consideration has been givento the provision of a means for definitely positioning the kiln car onthe transfer carriage with protection against the car being moved offsaid carriage at a time when movable carriage rails 58 are not inabutting relation with any of the stationary rails. As is presentlypreferred, this last mentioned provision includes stop means which areautomatically movable out of stopping relationship with the carriagerails 58 when the carriage rails are moved into abutting relationshipwith adjacent track rails whereby to permit unobstructed movement of theskiln car onto and off of the carriage.

The stop-means which is presently preferred for use in the presentinvention is shown in detail in Figs. 4 and 5. This stop means includesa stop 92 in the form of a bar which is fixed to the horizontal portion94 of an angle bracket 96 having a depending part 98. The angle bracket96 is pivotally mounted on a channel member 100 which is fixed to atransfer rail 58 as by welding, although other means for securing may beemployed. As shown in Figs. 4 and 5, the means for pivotally mountingthe angle bracket 96 on the channel 100 is a pin 102 welded through ahole in the horizontal portion of angle 96 and projected through theholes in horizontal portions of channel bracket 100. Fixedly secured tothe vertical portion 98 of the bracket 96 is an angle member 104 havingone portion 106 in surface-to-surface engagement with the vertical part98 of bracket 96 and the other part 108 thereof extending outwardly awayfrom the track rail 58. It will become clear hereinafter that part 108of bracket 96 serves as a movable abutment. It will i be apparent thatall the elements numbered 92 through 108 move with the rails 58. Fixedto the right hand end member 48 (see Fig. 2) is another angle member 110having a portion 112 extending longitudinally of the end member 48 and aportion 114 extending transversely of the end member 48 and into theline of movement of the portion 108 of the bracket 104. As will be seenhereinafter portion 114 of member 112 serves as a fixed abutment. It isclear from the foregoing that the angle bracket 110 is fixed relative tothe rails 58 when the latter are shifted by means of lever 90.

Accordingly, and referring specifically to Fig. 4 when the lever ismoved so as to shift the rails 58 from the solid position shown in Fig.4 to the dotted position shown in Fig. 4, the portion 108 of the bracket104 engages the portion 114 of the bracket 110. As movement f 31 8993138895, this engagement causes a turning 3 or the angle bracket 96about the pin 102, which turning moves stop 92 out of stoppingrelationship with the carriage rail 58. When the stop 92 is out ofengagement with the carriage rail 58, the end 66 of the carriage rail 58is in abutting relationship with the end 62 of the confronting trackrail. Accordingly, a kiln car may be moved onto or off of the transfercarriage 42 without obstruction from the stop 92 and without jarringwhich would occur if the edges 66 of the carriage rails 58 were spacedfrom the edges 62 of the adjacent track rails. When the lever 90 isoperated in the opposite direction to retract the carriage rails '58from the adjacent track rails, the portions 108 and 114 of thecooperating brackets 104 and 110 move out of engagement and anglebracket 96 is accordingly returned to its original condition by means ofa helical spring 116 which is operatively fixed at one end to the trackrail 58 as at 118 and is operatively fixed at its other end to the anglebracket 96 as at 120.

A like stop means is provided at the opposite end of .at least one ofthe track rails 58 and operates in precisely the same manner but formovement of the track rail in the opposite direction. With such anarrangement it is to be noted that only the stop means adjacent the endof the carriage rails which are moved into abutting relationship withthe adjacent ends of the track rails is moved out of stoppingrelationship. The other stop means remains in stopping relationship tothereby prevent any undesired movement of a kiln car past the pointwhere the unmoved stop is located.

To further enhance the desirability of the present arrangement and toprevent accidental displacement of transfer mechanism 42 from itsalignment with the adjacent track rails it is serving, the followingprovision is made. This provision consists of spring clamps 122 whichare secured to the carriage rails 58 at their respective ends and whichfrictionally engage the adjacent ends of confronting track rails whenthe carriage rails are brought into abutting relationship therewith. Thefrictional effect of clamps 122 against the sides of stationary railsserves to some extent to prevent the movement of transfer rails 58 whena car is moved from a pair of stationary track rails to the transfermechanism. Moreover, by bending the spring clamps as at 123, the clampsfurther serve to help register the carriage rails with the adjacenttrack rails.

A positive means for preventing inadvertent or accidental movement ofthe carriage rails 58 is a detent means 125 which may cooperate with thelever 96 to releasably hold lever 91) and shaft 81 in the position towhich they were last moved and thereby positively prevent inadvertentmovement of the carriage rails 58. The detent means may be operated by ahandle 127 pivotally mounted on lever 91 by a pin 129.

In operation, as a kiln car running along tracks and 12 leaves kiln 14,it is brought to a halt adjacent the ends of said track rails 11) and12. The transfer mechanism 42 is then wheeled into position so that thecarriage rails 58 are substantially in alignment with the track rails 10and 12. When this is accomplished, lever 91 is operated in a left handdirection as viewed in Fig. 3 to thereby impart longitudinal movement tocarriage rails 58 in a left handed direction. The spring clamps or locks122 engage the edges 62 of the track rails 10 and 12 and effect anautomatic final alignment of the carriage rails 58 with the track rails10 and 12. Movement of the lever continues until the carriage rails arebrought into edge abutting relationship with the track rails 10 and 12.As this movement nears completion, the bracket portions 108 and 114 comeinto engagement and thereby pivot bracket 96 to move the stop 92adjacent the track rails 10 and 12 out of stopping relationship with thetrack rail 53. The stop 92 remote from the track rails 10 and 12 remainsin stopping relationship. Detent 125 drops into position to preventinadvertent movement of lever 90 and shaft 80 and spring clamps 122clamp against the inner surfaces of rails 10 and 12 to thereby fixedlyhold the carriage rails in position. With the carriage so conditioned,the kiln car may be moved without any jarring onto the carriage rails 58and off of the track rails 10 and 12. This movement is preferablycontinued until the wheels of the kiln car engage the unremoved stop 92.When this is accomplished detent 125 is released as by operation ofhandle 127, and the lever is moved rightwise to the center positionwhereby to Withdraw the carriage rails 58 from abutting relationshipwith the track rails 10 and 12. As this movement is effected, spring 116returns the stop 92 adjacent rails 10 and 12 into stopping relationshipwith track rail 58 whereby to prevent the accidental movement "of thekiln car off the carriage rails 58.

With the kiln car now on the transfer carriage 42 and the carriage rails58 moved to their central or neutral position, the carriage may now bewheeled along the transfer rails 33 and 40 until it is brought intosubstantial alignment with any other of the pairs of track rails; forexample, into alignment with the track rails 32 and 34. At this pointthe detent means is again operated so that lever 91 may be moved in arightwise direction to shift the carriage rails 58 in a rightwisedirection. The spring clamps 122 engage the edges 62 of the track rails32 and 34 to complete the alignment of these rails with the carriagerails and to thereafter clamp track rails 32 and 34. The movement of thecarriage rails 58 continues until the edges 66 of the carriage rails 53are in abutting relationship with the edges 62 of the track rails 32 and34. Towards the end of this rightwise movement of the track rails 58,the stop 92 adjacent the edges 66 of the carriage rails is moved out ofstopping relationship due to the pivoting of the bracket 96 by means ofthe engagement of bracket portions 108 and 114. With the carriage inthis condition the kiln car may be rolled off the carriage and onto thetrack rails 32 and 34 without any jarring.

It will be obvious to anyone skilled in the art that any combination ofmovements similar to those described in the above paragraphs may bereadily effected by the novel transfer mechanism described above.Moreover, the novel transfer mechanism described above may be employedwhen there are track rails only on one side of the transfer tracks 38and 40. Furthermore, any number of pairs of track rails may be workedwith effectively by the transfer mechanism described above.

While I have herein shown and described the preferred embodiment of theinvention, it will be understood that various changes and modificationsmay be made therein within the scope of the appended claims withoutdeparting from the spirit and scope of this invention.

Having now described my invention, what I claim as new and desire tosecure by Letters Patent is:

1. A transfer mechanism, comprising a carriage which is adapted to bemoved along a predetermined path of movement, a pair of spaced apartcarriage rails movably mounted on said carriage for longitudinalmovement relative to said carriage transverse to said predetermined pathof movement of said carriage, means for moving said carriage rails in alongitudinal direction to and from a first position and to and from asecond position, and stop means associated with one of said carriagerails and movable into and out of stopping relationship therewith inresponse to movement of said carriage rails to and from said first andsecond positions, said stop means being in stopping relationship withsaid one carriage. rail when said carriage rails are in said firstposition and being out of stopping relationship with said one carriagerail when said carriage rails are in said second position.

2. A transfer mechanism, comprising a carriage which is adapted to bemoved along a predetermined path of movement, a pair of spaced apartcarriage rails movably mounted on said carriage for longitudinalmovement relative to said carriage transverse to said predetermined pathof movement of said carriage, means for moving said carriage rails toand from a first extreme position, to and .7 from a second extremeposition and to and from an intermediate position, a first stop meansassociated with one of said carriage rails adjacent said first extremeposition and movable into and out of stopping relationship with said onerail in response to movement of said carriage rails to and from saidfirst extreme position, said first stop means being in stoppingrelationship with said one carriage rail when said carriage rails are insaid second extreme position and in said intermediate position and beingout of stopping relationship with said one carriage rail when saidcarriage rails are in said first extreme position, and a second stopmeans associated with one of said carriage rails adjacent said secondextreme position and movable into and out of stopping relationship withsaid last mentioned one rail in response to movement of said carriagerails to and from said second extreme position, said second stop meansbeing in stopping relationship with said last mentioned one carriagerail when said carriage rails are in said first extreme position and insaid intermediate position and being out of stopping relationship withsaid last mentioned one rail when said carriage rails are in said secondextreme position.

3. A transfer mechanism, comprising a carriage which is adapted to bemoved along a predetermined path of movement, a pair of spaced apartcarriage rails movably mounted on said carriage for longitudinalmovement relative to said carriage transverse to said predetermined pathof movement of said carriage, means for moving said carriage rails in alongitudinal direction to and from a first position and to and from asecond position, and stop means operatively pivotally mounted on one ofsaid carriage rails, said stop means including a stop normally overlyingsaid one carriage rail and movable out of overlying relationshiptherewith, said stop means further including an abutment which isoperatively fixed to said stop, another abutment operatively fixed tosaid carriage and disposed in the path of movement of said firstmentioned abutment so that when said carriage rails are moved from saidfirst to said second positions, said abutments come into engagement andimpart pivotal movement to said stop means to move said stop out ofoverlying relationship with said one carriage rail.

4. A transfer mechanism, comprising a carriage which is adapted to bemoved along a predetermined path of movement, a pair of spaced apartcarriage rails movably mounted on said carriage for longitudinalmovement relative to said carriage transverse to said predetermined pathof movement of said carriage, means for moving said carriage rails toand from a first extreme position, to and from a second extreme positionand to and from an intermediate position, a first stop means associatedwith one of said carriage rails adjacent saidfirst extreme position andbeing operatively pivotally mounted thereon for movement into and out ofstopping relationship with said one rail, said first stop meansincluding a stop normally overlying said one carriage rail and movableout of overlying relationship therewith, said stop means furtherincluding an abutment which is operatively fixed to said stop, anotherabutment operatively fixed to said carriage and disposed in the path ofmovement of said first mentioned abutment so that when said carriagerails are moved from said intermediate position to said first extremeposition said abutments come into engagement and impart pivotal movementto said stop means .to move said stop out of overlying relationship withsaid one carriage rail, and a second stop means associated with one ofsaid carriage rails and being operatively pivotally mounted on said lastmentioned one carriage rail adjacent said second-extreme position, saidsecond stop means including a second stop normally overlying said lastmentioned one carriage rail and being pivotally movable ,out ofoverlying relationship therewith and a third abut ment operatively fixedto said stop, a fourth abutment op- ,eratively fixed to said carriageand disposed in the path of tnovementof said third abutment so thatwhensaid carriage rails" are moved from said intermediate position to saidsecond extreme position, said third and fourth abutments come intoengagement and impart pivotal movement to said second stop means to movesaid second stop out of overlying relationship with said last mentionedone carriage rail.

5. A transfer mechanism, comprising a carriage which is adapted to bemoved alonga predetermined path of movement, a pair of spaced apartcarriage rails movably mounted on said carriage for longitudnialmovement relative to said carriage transverse to said predetermined pathof movement of said carriage, means for moving said carriage rails in alongitudinal direction to and from a first position and to and from asecond position, and stop means operatively pivotally mounted on one ofsaid carriage rails, said stop means including a stop normally overlyingsaid one carriage rail and being pivotally movable out of overlyingrelationship therewith, said stop means further including an abutmentwhich is operatively fixed to said stop, another abutment operativelyfixed to said carriage and disposed in the path of mo ement of saidfirst mentioned abutment so that when said carriage rails are moved fromsaid first to said second positions, said abutrneuts come intoengagement and impart pivotal movement to said stop means to move saidstop out of overlying relationship with said one carriage rail, andmeans normally biasing said stop means in the direction to cause saidstop to overlie said one carriage rail.

6. A transfer mechanism, comprising a carriage which is adapted tobe'moved along a predetermined path of movement, a pair of spaced apartcarriage rails movably mounted on said carriage for longitudinalmovement relative to said carriage transverse to said predetermined pathof movement of said carriage, means for moving said carriage rails toand from a first extreme position, to and from a second extreme positionand to and from an intermediate position, a first stop means operativelypivotally mounted on one of said carriage rails adjacent said firstextreme position and being pivotally movable into and out of stoppingrelationship with said one rail, said first stop means including a firststop normally overlying said one carriage rail and being pivotallymovable out of overlying relationship therewith, said first stopmeansfurther including an abutment which is operatively fixed to said firststop, another abutment operatively fixed to said carriage and disposedin the path of movement of said first mentioned abutment so that whensaid carriage rails are moved from said intermediate position to saidfirst extreme position said abutments come into engagement and impartpivotal movement to said first stop means to move said first stop out ofoverlying relationship with said one carriage rail, and means normallybiasing said first stop means in the direction to cause said first stopto overlie said one carriage rail, and a second stop means associatedwith one of said carriage rails and operatively pivotally mountedthereon adjacent said second extreme position, said second stop meansincluding a second stop normally overlying said last mentioned onecarriage rail and being pivotally movable out of overlying relationshiptherewith and a third abutment operatively fixed to said second stop, afourth abutment operatively fixed to said carriage and disposed in thepath of movement of said third abutment so that when said carriage railsare moved from said intermediate position to said second extremeposition, said third and fourth abutments come into engagement andimpart pivotal movement to said second stop means to move said secondstop out of overlying relationship with said last mentioned one carriagerail, and means normally biasing said second stop means in the directionto cause said second stop to overlie said lastmentioned one carriagerail.

7. A transfer mechanism, comprising a carriage which is adapted to bemoved along a predetermined path of movement, a pair of spaced apartcarriage rails movably mounted on said carriage for longitudinalmovement relative to said carriage transverse to said predetermined pathof movement of said carriage, a pivotally movable shaft mounted on saidcarriage, a lever fixed to said shaft for imparting pivotal movementthereto, a crank fixed to said shaft, means operatively connecting saidcrank to said transfer rails for imparting longitudinal linear movementto the latter when the former is pivotally operated whereby to move saidcarriage rails to and from first and second positions, and stop meansoperatively pivotally mounted on one of said carriage rails, said stopmeans including a stop normally overlying said one carriage rail andbeing pivotally movable out of overlying relationship therewith, saidstop means further including an abutment which is operatively fixed tosaid stop, another abutment operatively fixed to said carriage anddisposed in the path of movement of said first mentioned abutment sothat when said carriage rails are moved from said first to said secondposition, said abutments come into engagement and impart pivotalmovement to said stop means to move said stop out of overlyingrelationship with said one carriage rail.

8. Mechanism for transferring a car onto and off of a pair of trackrails, comprising a pair of transfer rails ex tending transversely ofsaid track rails, a carriage having a plurality of wheels disposed onsaid transfer rails for rotatably mounting said carriage thereon, a pairof carriage rails movably disposed on said carriage transversely of saidtransfer rails, said carriage rails being spaced apart a like distanceas said track rails are spaced apart and further being registrabletherewith, means for moving said carriage rails in a longitudinaldirection into and out of abutting relationship with said track railswhen said two pairs of rails are in registry, and stop means operativelypivotally mounted on one of said carriage rails, said stop meansincluding a stop normally overlying said one carriage rail and movableout of overlying relationship therewith, said stop means furtherincluding an abutment which is operatively fixed to said stop, anotherabutment operatively fixed to said carriage and disposed in the path ofmovement of said first mentioned abutment so that when said carriagerails are moved from out of abutting relationship with said track railsinto abutting relationship with said track rails said abutments comeinto engagement and impart pivotal movement to said stop means to movesaid stop out of overlying relationship with said one carriage rail.

9. Mechanism for transferring a car onto and off of a pair of trackrails, comprising a pair of transfer rails extending transversely ofsaid track rails, a carriage having a plurality of wheels disposed onsaid transfer rails for rotatably mounting said carriage thereon, a pairof carriage rails movably disposed on said carriage transversely of saidtransfer rails, said carriage rails being spaced apart a like distanceas said track rails are spaced apart and further being registrabletherewith, means for moving said carriage rails in a longitudinaldirection into and out of abutting relationship with said track railswhen said two pairs of rails are in registry, and stop means operativelypivotally mounted on one of said carriage rails, said stop meansincluding a stop normally overlying said one car riage rail and movableout of overlying relationship there: with, said stop means furtherincluding an abutment which is operatively fixed to said stop, anotherabutment operatively fixed to said carriage and disposed in the path ofmovement of said first mentioned abutment so that when said carriagerails are moved from out of abutting rela tionship with said track railsinto abutting relationship with said track rails said abutments comeinto engage ment and impart pivotal movement to said stop means to movesaid stop out of overlying relationship with said one carriage rail, andclamp means for releasably holding said carriage rails in abuttingrelationship with said track rails.

10. Mechanism for transferring a car onto and off of a pair of trackrails, comprising a pair of transfer rail-s extending transversely ofsaid track rails, a carriage having a plurality of wheels disposed onsaid transfer rails for rotatably mounting said carriage thereon, a pairof carriage rails movably disposed on said carriage transversely of saidtransfer rails, said carriage rails being spaced apart a like distanceas said track rails are spaced apart and further being registrabletherewith, a pivotally movable shaft mounted on said carriage, a leverfixed to said shaft for imparting pivotal movement thereto, a crankfixed to said shaft, means operatively connecting said crank to saidcarriage rails for imparting longitudinal linear movement to the latterwhen the former is pivotally operated whereby to move said carriagerails to and from a position in which the ends of said carriage railsabut against the ends of said track rails and to and from a position inwhich the ends of said carriage rails are spaced from said ends of saidtrack rails, and stop means operatively pivotally mounted on one of saidcarriage rails, said stop means including a stop normally overlying saidone carriage rail and movable out of overlying relationship therewith,said stop means further including an abutment which is operatively fixedto said stop, another abutment operatively fixed to said carriage anddisposed in the path of movement of said first mentioned abutment sothat when said carriage rails are moved from out of abuttingrelationship with said track rails into abutting relationship with saidtrack rails said abutments come into engagement and impart pivotalmovement to said stop means to move said stop out of overlyingrelationship with said one carriage rail.

11. Mechanism for transferring a car into and off of a pair of trackrails, comprising a pair of transfer rails extending transversely ofsaid track rails, a carriage having a plurality of wheels disposed onsaid transfer rails for rotatably mounting said carriage thereon, a pairof carriage rails movably disposed on said carriage transversely of saidtransfer rails, said carriage rails being spaced apart a like distanceas said track rails are spaced apart and further being registrabletherewith, a pivotally movable shaft mounted on said carriage, a leverfixed to said shaft for imparting pivotal movement thereto, a crankfixed to said shaft, means operatively connecting said crank to saidcarriage rails for impart ing longitudinal linear movement to the latterwhen the former is pivotally operated whereby to move said carriagerails to and from a position in which the ends of said carriage railsabut against the ends of said track rails and to and from a position inwhich the ends of said carriage rails are spaced from said ends of saidtrack rails, and stop means operatively pivotally mounted on one of saidcarriage rails, said stop means including a stop normally overlying saidone carriage rail and movable out of overlying relationship therewith,said stop means further including an abut-ment which is operativelyfixed to said stop, another abutment operatively fixed to said carriageand disposed in the path of movement of said first mentioned abutment sothat when said carriage rails are moved from out of abuttingrelationship with said track rails into abutting relationship with saidtrack rails said abutments come into engagement and impart pivotalmovement to said stop means to move said stop out of overlyingrelationship with said one carriage rail, and clamp means for releasablyholding said carriage rails in abutting relationship with said trackrails.

12, Mechanism for transferring a car to and from a first pair of trackrails and to and from a second pair of track rails having its endsspaced fromthe ends of said first pair of track rails in both alongitudinal and a transverse direction, comprising a pair of transferrails extending transversely of said first and second pairs of trackrails and in between their respective ends, a carriage having aplurality of wheels disposed on said transfer rails for rotatablymounting said carriage thereon, a pair of carriage rails movablydisposed on said carriage transversely of said transfer rails, saidcarriage rails being spaced apart a like distance as said first andsecond pairs of track rails are spaced apart and further beingregistrable with each of said pairs of track rails; means for movingsaid carriage rails to and from a first extreme position in which onepair of ends of said carriage rails are in abutting relation with theends of said first pair of track rails when said carriage rails are inregistry with said first pair of track rails, and to and from a secondextreme position in which the other pair of ends of said carriage railsare in abutting relation with the ends of said second pair of trackrails when said carriage rails are in registry with said second pair oftrack rails, and to and from an intermediate position in which bothpairs of ends of said carriage rails are spaced from the ends of saidfirst and second sets of track rails; a first stop means operativelypivotally connected to one of said transfer rails adjacent said firstset of track rails, said first stop means including a first stopnormally overlying said one carriage rail and being pivotally movableout of overlying relationship therewith, said stop means furtherincluding an abutment fixed to said stop, and spring means for biasingsaid stop into overlying relationship with said one carriage rail,another abutment operatively fixed to said carriage and disposed in thepath of movement of said first mentioned abutment so that when saidcarriage rails are moved from said intermediate position to said firstextreme position said abutments come into engagement and thereby impartpivotal movement to said first stop means to pivotally move said firststop out of overlying relationship with said one carriage rail againstthe bias of said spring means, and a second stop means associated withone of said carriage rails and being pivotally mounted thereon adjacentsaid second set or" track rails, said second stop means including asecond stop normally overlying said last mentioned carriage rail andbeing pivotally movable out of overlying relationship therewith, a thirdabutment operatively fixed to said second stop, and spring means forbiasing said second stop into overlying relationship with said lastmentioned carriagerail, a fourth abutment fixed to said carriage anddisposed in the path of movement of said third abutment so that whensaid carriage rails are moved from said intermediate position to saidsecond extreme position, said third and fourth abutments come intoengagement and thereby impart pivotal movement to said second step meansto move said second stop out of overlying relationship with said lastmentioned carriage rail against the bias of said spring means, and clampmeans connected to said carriage rails at both ends thereof forreleasably holding said carriage rails in abutting relationship withsaid first and second sets of track rails.

13. A transfer mechanism, comprising a carriage which is adapted to bemoved along a predetermined path of movement, a pair of spaced apartcarriage rails movably mounted on said carriage for longitudinalmovement relative to said carriage transverse to said predetermined pathof movement of said carriage, means for moving said carriage rails in alongitudinal direction to and from a first position and from and to asecond position, and stop means operatively connected to one ofsaidcarriage rails and movable into and out of stopping relationshiptherewith, and means for moving said stop means into and out of stoppingrelationship with said one carriage rail in response to the movement ofsaid carriage rails.

14. A transfer mechanism, comprising a carriage which is adapted to bemoved along a predetermined path of movement, a pair of spaced apartcarriage rails moveably mounted on said carriage for longitudinalmovement relative to said carriage transverse to said predetermined pathof movement of said carriage, means for moving said carriage rails toand from a first extreme position, to and from a second extreme positionand to and from an intermediate position, a first stop means operativelyconnected to one of said carriage rails adjacent said first extremeposition and moveable into and out of stopping relationship with saidone rail, means responsive to movement of said carriage rails, formoving said first stop means into stopping relationship with said onecarriage rail when said carriage rails are moved out of said firstextreme position and for moving said stop means out of stoppingrelationship with said one carriage rail when said carriage rails aremoved into said first extreme position, and a second stop meansoperatively connected to one of said carriage rails adjacent said secondextreme position and movable into and out of stopping relationship Withsaid last mentioned one rail, and means responsive to movement of saidcarriage rails for moving said second stop means into stoppingrelationship with said last mentioned one carriage rail when saidcarriage rails are moved out of said second extreme position and formoving said stop means vout of stopping relationship with said lastmentioned one rail when said carriage rails are moved into said secondextreme position.

15. A transfer mechanism, comprising a carriage which is adapted to bemoved along a predetermined path of movement, a pair of spaced apartcarriage rails moveably mounted on said carriage for longitudinalmovement relative to said carriage transverse to said predetermined pathof movement of said carriage, a pivotally moveable shaft mounted on saidcarriage, a lever fixed to said shaft for imparting pivotal movementthereto, a crank fixed to said shaft,'means operatively connecting saidcrank to said carriage rails for imparting longitudinal linear movementto the latter when the former is pivotally operated whereby to move saidtransfer rails to and from first and second positions, and stop meansoperatively connected to one of said carriage rails and being moveableinto and out of stopping relationship therewith, and means responsive tomovement of said carriage rails for moving said stop means into stoppingrelationship with said one carriage rail when said carriage rails aremoved out of said first position and for moving'said stop means out ofstopping relationship with said one carriage rail when said carriagerails are moved into said second position.

16. Mechanism for transferring a car onto and ed of a pair of trackrails, comprising a pair of transfer rails extending transversely ofsaid track rails, a carriage having a plurality of Wheels disposed onsaid transfer rails for rotatably mounting said carriage thereon, a pairof carriage rails moveably disposed on said carriage transversely ofsaid transfer rails, said carriage rails being spaced apart a likedistance as said track rails are spaced apart and further beingregistrable therewith, means for moving said carriage rails in alongitudinal direction into and out of abutting relationship With saidtrack rails when said two pairs of rails are in registry, and stop meansoperatively connected to one of said carriage rails and moveable intoand out of stopping relationship therewith, and means responsive tomovement of said carriage rails for moving said stop means into stoppingrelationship with said one carriage rail when said carriage rails aremoved out of abutting relationship with said track rails and for movingsaid stop means out of stopping relationship with said one carriage railwhen said carriage rails are moved into abutting relationship with saidtrack rails.

17. Mechanism for transferring a car onto and off of a pair of trackrails, comprising a pair of transfer rails extending transversely ofsaid track rails, a carriage having a plurality ofwheels disposed onsaid transfer rails for rotatably mounting said carriage thereon, a pairof carriage rails moveably disposed on said carriage transversely ofsaid transfer rails, said carriage rails being spaced apart a likedistance as said track rails are spaced apart and further beingregistrable therewith, means for moving said carriage rails in alongitudinal direction into 13 14 moveable into and out of stoppingrelationship therewith, Referemtes Cited in the file of this patentmeans responsive to movement of said carriage rails for UNITED STATESPATENTS moving said stop means into stopplng relationshlp with said onecarriage rail when said carriage rails are moved Re. 4,121 WheelockSept. 13, 1870 out of abutting relationship with said track rails andfor 5 1,584,031 Hannallel 6t y 11, 1926 moving said stop means out ofstopping relationship with 1,629,805 McCarroll May 24, 1927 said onecarriage rail when said carriage rails are moved 1,764,354Schellentrager et a1; June 30, 1930 into abutting relationship with saidtrack rails, and 2,229,340 Pethick Jan. 21, 1941 means for clampinglyholding said carriage rails in abut- 2,321,253 Schellentrager June 8,1943 ting relationship with said track rails. w 2,414,301 Harris Jan.14, 1947

